A rare Irish silver Freedom Box, engraved with the coat of arms of the city of Londonderry, in Northern Ireland. Freedom boxes are typically Irish, and were used as presentation pieces to distinguished non- residents who received the honorary freedom of the city (Bennett, Collecting Irish Silver). Example from Dublin, Youghal, Limerick and Cork are known (Bennett), Londonderry is rare. The coat of arms includes a skeleton sitting on a hill, with a turreted castle, and the George Cross and dagger of London above. The skeleton is thought to represent starvation during the great siege. The city motto "Vita Veritas Victoria" (Life, Truth, Victory) is engraved below. The engraving quality is superb, with delicate flowers and chased C scrolls. The decorated lid is a separate panel that has been set into a presumably plain table snuff box. The box has a curved thumbpull for easy opening, and is gilded interior and exterior, with exception of the base. The only hallmarks present are the makers mark (struck twice, on ...

A lovely pair of Georgian Irish silver hook-end basting spoons, made in Dublin in 1788, the spoons are a pleasing weight and quality. The spoons have the traditional hook end only found on some 18th Century Irish silver spoons, and are Old English in pattern. The spoon bowls are generous, very suitable for use as serving spoons. Both spoons are engraved with a peacock family crest, this has some wear but is still visible. Both spoons also have original owners initials P/IG on the back of the drops. The spoons are bottom marked with 4 hallmarks, the Hibernia, crowned harp and date letter Q for 1788 are clear on both spoons. The makers mark on both spoons has been lightly struck and unfortunately not readable (although first letter appears to be C in rectangular punch, so possibly Christopher Haines). Ian Pickford, in his book "Silver Flatware", describes hook-end or turned-over flatware as peculiar to Ireland, principally with 18th century serving pieces, for hanging the piece up (page 56).

A Georgian Irish silver sugar bowl, made by Charles Townsend in Dublin around 1780. The bowl is circular with a fluted design and a flat fold over gadrooned rim, supported by three cast silver shell knuckle hoof feet, we love these feet. The base of the bowl is engraved with original owners initials P over M M, this is alongside the hallmarks. The bowl is clearly hallmarked with the Irish Hibernia and Crowned Harp, next to makers mark CT for Charles Townsend, who worked in Dublin between 1773 and 1790. This is a large bowl, more suitable today for bon-bons, it will hold a lot of sugar! The size and design is typical of the period for Irish silver, a number of other examples have survived. A similar shaped bowl but with different design, but with identical feet, now in the National Museum of Ireland. can be seen in a colour photograph in the book "Collecting Irish Silver" by Douglas Bennett (a book we highly recommend), page 63 and 65. The Metropolitan Museum also has a very similar fluted bowl, also by Charl...

A rare Irish provincial silver toddy ladle made in Cork, but hallmarked in Dublin. The ladle is circular with a lip for pouring, and has a whale bone handle. The ladle is beautifully decorated, with embossed flowers, leaves and scrolls, on a stippled background. The pouring lip is decorated with a "sunburst" collar. The decoration is typical of the Irish silver of the 1820 period, with floral repousse (embossing) on a background stippled to a matt finish (Bennett, Collecting Irish Silver, pg 79). The whalebone handle is 4 sided, and has an unusual knop end, the circular knob set above silver banded decoration. The hallmarks are all very clear, including makers mark PG in oval outline (Cork mark no. 80 in Bennett). The Dublin Goldsmiths company passed an act in 1807 requiring the Kings head to be stamped on all plate made in Ireland. As this could only be done in Dublin, it forced the provincial goldsmiths to start sending silver to Dublin for hallmarking. Garde, who worked in Cork between 1812 and 1845, appe...

A rare and interesting pair of Irish Georgian silver Bright Cut tablespoons, engraved "Wicklow Reg", for the 37th Wicklow Regiment, part of the Irish Militia. The spoons are Old English in shape, with the traditional "Dublin Star" engraved at the top above the oval cartouche with the regimental engraving, and traditional bright cut engraving. One spoon is in very good condition, the second has small dents to the bowl, overall quite pleasing for Regimental silver spoons which often are in poor condition. One spoon has excellent hallmarks, the second spoon has clear makers mark but worn Irish marks, still visible (spoon with good hallmarks has the dents to bowl). John Shiels (or Sheils) had a long career between 1762 and 1790, given these spoons are 1797 it is possible a son took over his punches. 38 Regiments of Irish Militia were established in 1793 (one from each county) after the outbreak of war with France, to free regular soldiers up and to control the Irish rebellion. The 37th Wicklow Regiment first saw ...

A mixed set of 6 Irish silver tablespoons, all with excellent hallmarks. 3 spoons are Old English pattern (a matching pair by John Pittar, 1779, bottom marked, with worn shellbacks, and a spoon by Michael Keating, 1799), and 3 are Fiddle pattern (1805 by J.S, 1812 by Richard Sawyer and 1832 by Samuel Neville, this last spoon has a rat-tail. 3 spoons have engraved family crest, 2 spoons have engraved initials, and one spoon has not been engraved. All 6 spoons have well struck and clear Dublin hallmarks, and clear makers marks.

A rare and interesting pair of Irish Georgian silver Bright Cut tablespoons, engraved "Wicklow Reg", for the 37th Wicklow Regiment, part of the Irish Militia. The spoons are Old English in shape, with the traditional "Dublin Star" engraved at the top above the oval cartouche with the regimental engraving, and traditional bright cut engraving. One spoon is in good condition with one small dent, the second has small pinhead dents to the bowl, overall quite pleasing for Regimental silver spoons which often are in poor condition. One spoon has excellent hallmarks, the second spoon has clear makers mark and date letter but worn Irish marks, still visible (spoon with good hallmarks has the dents to bowl). John Shiels (or Sheils) had a long career between 1762 and 1790, given these spoons are 1797is is possible a son took over his punches. 38 Regiments of Irish Militia were established in 1793 (one from each county) after the outbreak of war with France, to free regular soldiers up and to control the Irish rebellion...

A set of 6 Irish Georgian silver dessert spoons in the Fiddle pattern, made by Samuel Neville of Dublin in 1804. The spoons have no initials or engraving, and no signs of removal. All 6 spoons have good hallmarks, makers mark SN for Samuel Neville (struck both ways). They also have Hibernia and Harp Crowned, and date letter H for 1804 (note absence of duty mark, only introduced in Ireland in 1807). Samuel Neville worked between 1795 and 1851, he was a respected member of the community, he was Warden between 1804 and 1807 and was also elected to the Dublin City Council in 1807. He was Master in 1807 and 1827.

A set of 6 Irish silver dessert spoons, in the Fiddle pattern with rat-tails, a feature of Irish flatware of the period. The spoons have original owners engraved initials WMH. The hallmarks on all 6 are excellent, and include makers mark IB for James Brady, who worked between 1821 and 1842. The spoons also have the retailer's mark, NEILL, which is very clear on all the spoons. Irish retailers were among the first to mark flatware, early adopters of corporate branding. NEILL was a leading Belfast retailer, first established by Robert Neill in 1803, the firm survived until 1960.

A lovely pair of Irish Georgian silver tablespoons in the Old English pattern, with an engraved family crest for the Newton family of Dunleckney, County Carlow, featuring a Ducal coronet. The spoons are a pleasing quality, and are in excellent condition, the engraving is also crisp and clear. The crest features a boars head above Ducal coronet (with strawberry leaves), with 2 ostrich feathers above the coronet. The spoons are also engraved with owners initials N/GG on the drop. The hallmarks are clear on both spoons, the makers mark JB has wear to one of the J's. John Bayly worked between 1787 and 1804 (Bennett mark 204). These spoons would have been made for Colonel Philip Newton (1770-1833) and his wife Sarah when they inherited the Dunleckney estate in 1802. Note - we have a matching spoon S 11389.

A set of 4 Irish Georgian silver tablespoons in the Fiddle pattern, made by Samuel Neville of Dublin. The spoons have no initials or engraving, and no signs of removal. The hallmarks on all 4 spoons are excellent, all individually struck. They include makers mark SN, Hibernia, Crowned Harp and date letter I for 1805. Samuel Neville worked between 1795 and 1851, he was a respected member of the community, he was Warden between 1804 and 1807 and was also elected to the Dublin City Council in 1807. He was Master in 1807 and 1827.

An Irish Georgian silver basting spoon, in the Fiddle pattern, with a wonderful engraved family crest of a unicorn, this engraving is very clear. The spoon is quite large, with a generous sized serving bowl. The unicorn engraved family crest can be described as "a unicorn's head, couped, maned and horned", this is the family crest of the Cunningham family (or Conyngham), we think the Irish part of the family used Conyngham, whilst their Scottish counterparts used Cunningham. The spoon has 4 hallmarks, the crowned harp, Hibernia (Dublin marks) and date letter I for 1805 are clear and well struck. We note the punch shape on these marks is cavetto, with indented corners, more usually seen in the 1820's with Dublin hallmarks, but the absence of the Duty mark confirms a date before 1807. The makers mark JP is clear, but is overstriking another mark that is no longer visible. John Power worked between 1792 and 1819, from Trinity Place, Dublin, his father and son were also silversmith.

An Irish Provincial silver serving spoon made by Richard Garde of Cork, but hallmarked in Dublin in 1835. The spoon also has a rare retailers mark "R. CAVE", who is currently classified as unknown with location unknown, but as this mark has only been seen on silver by Richard Garde we can assume he was a Cork retailer. The spoon is Fiddle pattern with a Rat-tail, which is only seen on Irish silver during this period. The spoon is engraved with original owners initials WMC in script. The hallmarks are all very clear, the retailers mark could not be better. Given it's large size we have classified this spoon as a serving spoon, but it could have been a large tablespoon - it is certainly suitable for use as a serving spoon.

A set of 3 Irish Provincial silver dessert forks in the Fiddle pattern, made by Richard Garde of Cork in 1835. The forks are all engraved with a family crest of a Griffin, above engraved owners initials (possibly GT in script), the engraving is on the back of the forks, showing they were placed facing down on the table during those times. The forks are all clearly hallmarked, makers mark R.G, mark 86, page 191, Collecting Irish Silver by Douglas Bennett (a book we highly recommend). The crowned harp, Hibernia and date letter P are all clear, one duty mark is clear and 2 duty marks are worn but still visible. The Dublin Goldsmiths company passed an act in 1807 requiring the Kings head to be stamped on all plate made in Ireland. As this could only be done in Dublin, it forced the provincial goldsmiths to start sending silver to Dublin for hallmarking. Garde, who worked in Cork between 1824 and 1845, was presumably the son of silversmith Phineas Garde, who complied intermittently with the Dublin act. The Act sha...

An Irish silver wine label engraved CLARET, made by Benjamin Taitt in Dublin circa 1785. The label has a curved rectangular shape, with an attractive bright cut and wiggle work border, and original chain. This particular form of label is uniquely Irish, English examples of this type curved up, only Irish labels curve down. The Claret engraving is quirky, done by hand and rougher than London examples of the time. The hallmarks are excellent, and include makers mark BT in a serrated oblong, harp crowned in a irregular shaped punch (so pre 1786) and Hibernia in an oval punch (used before 1793). A very similar label, also by Taitt, is depicted in the book Wine Labels 1730-2003, pg 279, figure 927, for W-WINE, described as circa 1785-1790 so the dates match. The same book describes Taitt as "arguably the most innovative of Irish wine label makers, a particularly successful exponent of bright-cut engraving". He made the famous balloon label, only one of which is known, pg 82, and he worked between 1775 and 1800.

A 9 carat gold and green enamel sweetheart brooch, for the Irish regiment the Royal Ulster Rifles. The brooch has the regimental crest of Irish winged harp below Royal crown, and motto " Quis Separabit" (Who shall separate us). It also has a shamrock and hunting horn below the harp, the detail is lovely, this is a very good quality brooch. It is mounted on original gold brooch safety pin, which is in perfect working order. It is stamped with 9CT indicating it is 9 carat gold. The original leather box with gold trim is also lovely and well preserved, even the silk lining is still good. It is marked "W.P. Lewis & Co, Goldsmiths, Successors to Pim Bros Ltd, 19 Exchequer St, Dublin", the original retailer. The Royal Ulster Rifles also served in the Anglo Boer War, so this brooch could be older than our World War 1 date, as sweetheart brooches were also popular then. As this is a high quality gold brooch, it probably would have been presented by an officer. The Royal Ulster Rifles have won 7 Victoria Crosses, 4 in...

An interesting early Georgian Irish Hanoverian tablespoon, made by Alexander Richards in Dublin 1764. The spoon has a frontal rib, strong turn-up and a very narrow oval bowl. It is engraved with a Griffin crest on the back of the spoon, showing this spoon was placed on the table bowl down. The spoon is bottom marked, the date letter is very clear, but the makers mark , crowned harp and Hibernia are are worn, but still discernable. Alexander Richards, a noted Irish spoonmaker, worked between 1724 and 1768 (Bennett, Irish Silver, pg 152).

An interesting Irish Silver dish commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Easter Rising (Irish: Eiri Amach na Casca), also known as the Easter Rebellion or Sinn Fein Rebellion. The dish is circular with a scalloped edge, and contains a sterling silver medallion, with the burning Post Office "AIS EIRI na CASCA", 1916-1966. The back contains 7 signatures who were the signatories of the proclamation, all were executed by the British. They include: Tom Clark, Sean MacDermott, Thomas MacDonagh, Padraig Pearse, Eamon Ceannt, James Connolly, Joseph Plunkett. All were members of the Supreme Council of the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB). Their graves in the former military prison of Arbour Hill in Dublin is now a National Monument. The dish has 5 hallmarks in the bowl, including maker's mark RISL for Royal Irish Silver Limited, Hibernia, Harp Crowned, date letter Y and the Sword of Light 1916-1966 Jubilee mark, only used in 1966 to celebrate the anniversary. The medallion is also hallmarked, including mak...

A set of 6 Irish Georgian silver Celtic Point teaspoons, with bright cut "Dublin Star" engraving. The oval shield under the star is vacant, this was originally intended for a family crest or owners initials. This engraving was popular in Ireland between 1790 and 1800, the bright cut glitters in candlelight, the Star pattern is unique to Irish silver. The 6 spoons were made by 4 different makers, and have very slight differences, but the hand engraving was done by the same hand, so we believe the set was assembled by the engraver. All 6 spoons are hallmarked with the Dublin Hibernia and Harp Crowned, no date letters are present (as is usual with Irish teaspoons of this period). 4 Makers marks can be identified, 2 J.S for John Shiels (1762-1790), one AM for Arthur Murphy, and one JB for John Bayly, the fifth mark is ?D, the last is not legible. Slight differences includethe shapes of the drops, and the bowl shapes, some move oval than others (very slight differences).

An early Irish silver rat-tail Hanoverian tablespoon, made in 1729 by Esther Forbes, the widow of Robert Forbes. The spoon is lovely quality, a pleasing weight, and in remarkably good condition. The spoon has a deep frontal rib running halfway down the handle, with a strong turn-up, and the traditional rat-tail used before 1730. The spoon has original engraved family crest on the back of the spoon (spoons were placed face down at this period), the crest featured a raised arm in armour holding a cross (slight wear to the cross). The 3 hallmarks are clear, makers mark EF in oval punch (slight wear to F, looks more like EE), date letter gothic K for 1729, and crowned harp, with slight wear but clearly discernable. This spoon predates the Irish Hibernia mark which was introduced in 1731. Robert Forbes worked between 1701 and his death in 1718, his widow Esther continued the business until 1729. A number of their spoons have survived. Robert was a Quarter Brother (Collecting Irish Silver by Douglas Bennett, page 1...